Safeway Moving Systems

My landlord sold the building and gave everyone thirty days to leave so I was not exactly planning this move for months like some people do. Safeway Moving Systems squeezed me in on a Tuesday when most companies told me they were booked for three weeks. David looked at all my junk and laughed a little because I own too many books and not enough furniture. He did not charge me extra for the weight of all those books, which was nice because that truck was definitely heavier than he thought. I unpacked everything at the new place, and not one book was damaged.116. My company paid for my relocation, so I was not worried about the price, but I was worried about my stuff getting mixed up with someone else's. They gave every box a sticker with a number on it and Edward wrote down each number on a paper along with which room that box belonged in. When the truck unloaded at my new house, I walked through and checked the paper against the boxes, and nothing was missing. Highly recommended!

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $4875

I used Safeway Moving Systems for an interstate move from Virginia to Florida and would not recommend them based on my experience.

The problems started before pickup. The inventory Safeway sent was inaccurate, and I had to send detailed corrections for basic items, packing limits, and materials before the move. I also had to keep asking for confirmed pickup timing and clear documentation so we could coordinate with our building.

Communication with Austin and Karen was a major issue throughout the process. After pickup, we had to repeatedly ask for basic shipment status, including whether the shipment had been loaded, whether it had departed, where it was located, and when delivery would actually happen. The shipment was routed through a warehouse, but the lack of clear, proactive updates created avoidable disruption and additional costs.

At delivery, there were unexpected charges and multiple items were damaged, lost, or rendered unusable, including a flat screen TV, computer desk, table, bed frame, chairs, and other household items.

The post delivery claims process has also been frustrating and unclear. I submitted a formal damage claim with supporting documentation and then had to keep following up for basic information like a claim number, the correct claims contact, whether my documents were received, and what timeline applied.

Moving is stressful enough without unclear communication, damaged property, missing items, surprise charges, and an unclear claims process afterward. I would strongly caution anyone considering this company to document everything, keep all communication in writing, photograph every item, save every document, and be prepared to follow up repeatedly.

Move size: 3 Bedroom Home Service cost: $5500

Out of 20 years of military service and 8 different household goods shipments to include overseas moves, this has been by far the worst experience I have ever had.

I should have suspected something when I first started communicating with them. They were the cheapest and were promising everything to get my business. If you have ever dealt with a timeshare salesman, this is what they felt like.

Up to the point of pickup they seemed trustworthy and concerning for me as a customer. Once they had my items in their possession it just went downhill from there. Everything from lies, deception, ignoring calls, emails, accusations and threats. Once they have your items, they have the power to do whatever they want or else you don't get your items in return. "It's in the contract" as I was reminded several times. When you read the contract, it is completely so they are not held liable. They failed to meet pick up and delivery dates and then charged me for them being late on delivery. The movers that they used, M.A.D, failed to properly pack items, failed to perform a proper inventory, lost and damaged items, and added on to the lies and deception. Now that I have read some of the recent BBB complaints, I can fully relate on how they were treated. Don't fall for them like I did to include all of these fake reviews on here and Google.

Move size: 3 Bedroom Home Service cost: $7073

I dealt with Steve for my quote. It started off nice; cordial-like. After I had qualms over the price, it quickly turned into someone telling me to have a "bon-fire" with my meager belongings. Then I had the added luxury to hear him brag about his personal and business portfolio. SIT DOWN! Be humble... HE can take it away, just as quick.

To my middle class peeps... skip this guy! He clearly pointed out that he don't need "us". I want to be rich enough to not need the business of the "peasants" one day too. Hope this review goes "VIRAL" and this guy loses business.

To new Best Bud, Steve :)

Shalom

Move size: Partial Move Service cost: $3500

This company is the pits, I wish I’d done more research because they are not transparent but then act like their service is stellar. I should have known it would be bad when they assured me repeatedly that they’d give me 48 hours notice for the pickup, of which they give you a 3-day window, only to call me at 3:30 pm Saturday - literally the DAY BEFORE picking up my stuff. So they didn’t even give me 24-hour notice. Then, you’ll see that they rushed the pickup only to let my stuff sit in San Francisco for 4 weeks!

They contract the people who actually come and pick up your stuff. Those guys were fine for the pickup in San Francisco. But I’m honestly terrified after reading these reviews of what it’s going to be like for my delivery. Which btw is another awful part of their customer service (or lack thereof). You talk to a person at Safeway who goes over your list of items and briefly covers the process. They ask you a question about when the earliest day is that you could receive your delivery. But they fail to explain that whatever date you give them is actually 21 days AFTER when they will be delivering your stuff.

Ok so they picked my stuff up on 1/24 and I told them I’d be in my house by the 31st thinking there’s no rush and since I’m moving across the country, I’ll give it cushion. Wrong, that only has delayed the delivery even more! So here we are and now it’s February 19th. I call to find out when my stuff will be here and it’s been FOUR WEEKS since they picked it up. My stuff hasn’t even left San Francisco! I’ve been in Virginia for 4 weeks without my belongings. Their customer service agent told me today that they have until 21 days from the time you say your earliest available time to receive your delivery is to even SCHEDULE THE DELIVERY! Can you believe this pile of turd BS?

So on Monday I’m supposed to find out when I’ll get my stuff I guess? I don’t trust a word that comes out if these people’s mouths. And if they EVEN try to pull some stuff with me about living on a country road and needing to change trucks I will lose my mind on them. I will update my review following the delivery.

At this point I’m not sure how my opinion could be changed and what’s even worse is I recommended them to my manager who is also moving across the country and had issues with their quote being off by a large amount. Mine also ended up being about $2k over the initial quote. Lesson learned: sell your stuff, just get rid of it - you’ll be hating everything you own and thought you couldn’t live without if your move goes like this one and if you only need keepsakes and heirlooms I still say find something solid - doubt it’s this company.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $6500

I spoke with Joe and received an estimate to move my items, it was a very small load and he quoted me at $3099.25 for 256 cf. I gave him a very detailed list of items, a couple of things I actually ended up not moving. Total was $3099.25. The driver says I have way more cubic feet than quoted. I had elected a "not to exceed cost" price, I have my quote and I have my list from the movers that came to pick up the stuff and it matches 100%. However, the movers gave me a new total of $4347.25. That is a huge difference of $1248. Again, I immediately addressed this discrepancy with Joe, and he said he had no idea how that happened and would pass it on to operations. Which of course no one ever contacted me about. I had no choice but to pay that difference when the movers are in my house as I had to get on the road to my destination.

I would be ready to receive my items by 1/4/2021. I was told my belongings would be delivered within 10-21 days and that I would get a call when they were 48 hours out to give me a window for delivery. I called around the 3rd week of January to try and get an update. I was told I would get a call back and that technically they had until 2/4 which is 30 days because they don’t count weekends, etc.. If this was true, it would be here no later than 2/4. 2.4 I call and talk to Julian and he said it is still in Oregon. This means for 30 days it has been sitting in storage.

The company never let me know that there was a delay or anything. Julian let me know that he had been told by dispatch that they would be loading it in the next 2-3 days and he would call me Monday with an update. Monday came and went, no call from Julian. Tuesday, I called in and talked to a lady in customer service. She told me she would have to look into it and call me back. I got a call a little bit later from dispatch and he informed me my stuff had left and would be delivered in 5-7 days, that i would get a call when they were 24 hours out. 7 days comes and goes with no call. I call dispatch and they said it would be Thursday (9 days) and that i would get a call when they were 24 hours out with a delivery window. Dispatch also told me a story about a 53-foot tractor-trailer not being able to fit on our street. Which meant they had to go get a smaller truck, again at a significant additional cost of $350.00. This is not true as I have seen big trucks down here making deliveries, I have a picture of one from that day actually if you need it. I was told that this had to be paid for in cash, making me concerned that this was a scam. The cash had to be presented before they would deliver my furnishings or even open the truck to confirm they were in fact, mine. This is very unnerving to say the least to hand someone a ton of cash, without even seeing if the truck had my stuff in it, all of it, or damaged etc.. Anyway, Thursday came and went, I asked again for an update and now was told Friday or Saturday. Friday nothing happened, so I sent a message asking for an update again. I was told between 5-8pm Saturday (2/20) for delivery. Around 7:30pm or so I get a message that they are running behind and now would be between 8:30-9:30pm. The drivers call at 8:54pm and say they are 10 minutes out, about 40 minutes later they arrived. That part was pretty smooth, decent guys unloading, and they were quick. He also looked at said I probably had about 300cf, if so than what did the people loading charge me extra for??? It looked as everything was unloaded and it all looked ok, and they left about 10:30pm. Due to the super late time when they delivered everything, I did not want them to assemble the bed frame which is part of what I paid for also, taking the bed apart and putting it back together at the destination.

Because of this I did not notice until the next morning that what I saw was bed slats brought in was the only part of my daughter's bed they delivered. The entire frame is missing. I called Monday and asked to file a claim for the frame and everything else for $, and was told I would have it by end of the day. Which of course I did not. I called again yesterday and asked for a form, and again was told by end of day I would have it - I did not. I have now sent an email, and no for or response.

I have calculated that I am due a refund of the difference in what I paid compared to my estimate, plus the cost of the bed frame, plus the 30.00 a day for each day they were late, considering it took you 53 days to make the move I made in 6. That total is $2218.00

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $4697

I did research before choosing this company. They were rated as having “most accurate pricing”. This was true, I paid what I was quoted. However, when your stuff arrives smashed, broken, with kerosene (yes! Kerosene!!) spilled all over it and mice have chewed through boxes and pooped everywhere, that price is no longer accurate. And there claim system is 60 cents per pound per item. Choosing this option is the only way you get their “accurate quote” pricing (which is never explained, by the way). They shattered my flat screen tv that they ( the professionals??) packed themselves! Both of our office desks were cracked and corners broken off (again THEY packed those as well!) Kerosene was spilled all over our items, I have the saturated boxes to prove it. And why was there kerosene around our stuff?? I didn’t even go into the misleading delivery times they quoted. Bottom line, if you have nice things you don’t want to have to replace on your own DO NOT go with Safeway Moving System, you’ll end up paying more in the long run.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $6821

Getting a quote and contract in place with Safeway Moving system for my move from TX to NY was smooth but after they picked up our stuff it was a total nightmare that I am still dealing with. I had multiple stops for delivery in NY within 20 miles, one of them being Manhattan.

2 weeks after the pick-up, multiple agents, drivers and dispatch contacted me on the same day within hours of each other, including Safeway, with different delivery dates and times. It took almost a day to get clarity on the final (or so I thought was final) delivery date and time as none of them knew what was going on. I was already nervous at this point. To start with it was barely a 24 hour notice of the delivery date & time. It was close to 8pm the day before when I got the last call about the delivery. I was told my stuff would arrive at the first location between 11am and 1pm. I had repeatedly reminded every single person I talked to well before and after my items were picked up about the time restrictions at the 2nd location and each time the agents reassured me that wouldn't be a problem as they have done plenty of delivers in Manhattan and are aware of these types of restrictions. The next day (delivery day), I got a call from the actual driver around 12:40pm with ETA at 1st location of 4:30pm. I explained to him that is not the window I was given and that we won't be allowed at the 2nd location for delivery past 5pm. The driver was honest and said he had no idea about the time restrictions and that he would’ve planned for my delivery first that day had he known. I called the agent who called at 8pm the day before and said this is what is happening, he said he will talk to the driver and call me back. Neither the driver nor the agent called me back. I called them both back and no response. I then called every single number that had contacted me the day before, including safeway, and no one picked up. Finally the driver called back 2 hours later and said he now won't make it till 6pm due to traffic. This was not ideal but I said ok let me see if I can make this work. I made arrangements with the Manhattan location to allow us to unload my stuff until 7pm and luckily they agreed. Around 5:00pm I called the driver again and no response. I left a message and asked to go to Manhattan first as we had only till 7pm to move-in. I asked for an ETA which again took some time to get a response back and he responded saying he was still 1.5 hours away. This clearly would’ve been past the 7pm limit. I asked to speak to the manager and the manager started off yelling and continued to be completely rude necessarily and basically said I can take the delivery today at whatever time they get there or forget about getting my stuff. I was literally shaking from that phone call and told the driver to deliver the stuff at the 1st location in the fear of not getting my stuff back at all. They finally arrived at the 1st location at 7:30pm . I had to hire a second moving company to move my stuff to Manhattan. I kept contacting safeway (it was a Friday) and got no response. I called again on Monday (left a vm) and again no response. On Tuesday I called again and finally got a hold of an agent, explained the situation and he simply offered an apology and blamed me for choosing a cheap company to move (which I don't know who thinks 6K is anywhere near cheap). This wasn't the end of it all, when I opened the boxes rats had eaten up bunch of my stuff and every box had rat poo all over. So DISGUSTING! Don't hire this company, they are unprofessional, their movers are totally rude and none of them take any responsibility of their actions or lack of.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $6000

We booked March 4, 2021 for April 1, 2021 pickup in PA with a binding estimate of $4600, and paid the $1800 deposit; first available delivery scheduled for April 3. We were told it could take 2-5 days for our stuff to reach us in TN. Contract clearly states 14 day avg. for that distance, so we prepared for that length of time. On March 29, the new estimate was $5808; we could not cancel without losing our $1800 deposit, so we went ahead. On the pickup day, once all our stuff was on the truck, we’re told it would be $6389 based on volume.

After we arrived in TN on April 2, we waited a week and didn't hear anything. We called and asked for an updated delivery estimate and were told to expect a call back in 90 minutes. Never came. We called the next day, were told the same, and a call never came. We waited one day, then called again. No call back. I called again the next day and insisted I receive a call back, and was told I'd receive, at the very least, an email.

I never received the email, and I checked all of my folders. This email supposedly sent April 12. On Wednesday, we hadn't received a call to let us know our stuff would be delivered within 24 hours, so I called again to ask where our stuff was. Was told I'd get a callback. Never happened.

On Friday, April 16, I called again. I forcefully explained that I needed a guaranteed delivery date NOW or I'd recall the payments until I had one. I apologized for my frustration to the representative because it was not her fault, but explained that I was done being given the run-around since we'd paid over $6k for this move. She said she understood and I'd get a call back. Within 30 minutes we were told it would be that Saturday or Sunday (4/17-18).

Our stuff made it 4/18, and was badly damaged. Legs were broken off an $800 club chair, 3 of 4 dining chairs, and a secretariat. I clearly labeled boxes with fragile items as “Fragile,” but items wrapped in four layers of bubble wrap and cushioned with multiple items of clothing are utterly shattered and crushed.

We paid $2k in cash for the delivery and asked for a receipt. The deliverers gave me the completed contract and the form upon which I report damages.

The contract completion form just lists the remaining balance to be paid upon delivery, it doesn't actually state that it's been paid. The only way to know it's been paid is the "delivery complete" signature, and this was not sufficient for the reimbursement. So we called Safeway on Monday 4/19 and asked for a receipt that showed all $6389 had been paid.

We were told the "request has been submitted" and the receipt would be sent when it was ready. On 4/21 we learned there would be no reimbursement unless the receipt was submitted by end of business 4/22. So I called Safeway again.

My call was answered by someone who did not provide their name. As I explained that we'd asked for this receipt twice and had yet to receive it, and we needed it ASAP, the representative proceeded to talk over me and tell me that I couldn't just ask for a receipt same-day. He told me I had to wait for the receipt for $2k in cash until the driver returned to the warehouse, from CA to NYC. I told him this was ridiculous, we'd clearly paid since the stuff was delivered, and we needed SOMETHING, anything, that had the moving company's name and the full price of the move paid. The guy just talked over me slowly and loudly, explaining how moving works. I became irritated that he would not listen to me, did not seem to understand what I was asking for, and refused to hear my request. I started yelling over him, hoping he'd shut up and listen. He started yelling at me, called me rude, and scolded me for my tone and literally said "watch your language." I told him I would not, he was not listening to me, and he needed to be quiet and let me speak. I asked if the driver could submit pictures of whatever receipt he had that he didn't give us that proved we paid $2k in cash. The guy yelled that it was official paperwork, it had to be PDFs. I offered the names of free apps that allow people to use their smartphones to make PDFs with their cameras. He shouted "you think we know about those?!"

I asked to speak to his manager and he said "I AM THE MANAGER THATS WHY I'M TALKING TO YOU LIKE THIS."

His behavior was disgustingly condescending and thoroughly unhelpful. I have never experienced a customer service representative so uninterested in helping customers, especially one that had already been badly treated.

The "military precision" they promise is a lie. They get 1 star for getting from point A to point B, which is the very least they could actually do. There’s thousands of dollars of damage to our belongings, and even though I followed all packing guidelines and heavily cushioned valuable items, they were clearly mishandled or manhandled.

Move size: 1 Bedroom Home Service cost: $6389

I had arranged a move through company. Lisa was contact person. My quote for NJ to Fl was 4500. I paid 1800 deposit on credit card. Day of move a can and haul trailer attached showed up. They demanded 9000 DOLLARS. They were from a subcontractor Vango. Very deceptive and after several calls to Safeway with NO help, I sent them away. My attorney was required to get deposit back. NEVER saw anything like this in my life. After I told Lisa at the company I sent them away she told me she had a back up guy with his own company??? REALLY???? Made my day a living hell and delaying my buyers move in as well. They will be REPORTED toBBB - shame on you @safewaymovers. Disgusted and dismayed.

Move size: Studio Service cost: $4500

I can't even begin to describe how much of a disaster this was. I could talk about how the prices we were quoted weren't honored, how we were told to call our reps if their subcontractors asked us to sign something priced differently than what was agreed, or how I called and no one ever answered, or ever called me back after I left messages. I could talk about how we were pressed to pay in cashiers checks or cash so we couldn't contest the charges later down the line (which we of course ultimately regretted).

But none of that compares to how many of the last few things my mother cared about they destroyed. There's no place to include pictures, but the destruction was appalling. A dressing table broken to bits, an antique dining table (a family heirloom) with a leg ripped off, boxes crushed. My stepfather's ashes, a man who'd died just a few months before the move, went missing (it seems someone put it in the bottom of a box of hangers without telling us).

I called to complain and was told I should have gotten insurance. (Fair.) When I tried to bring to his attention just how egregious the damage was I was told, "well, things move in transit." The damage, please understand, is fairly jaw dropping and extensive. It doesn't look like things shifting in a truck. It looks like it was handled by someone who gave absolutely no concern about protecting our furniture.

My mom, having just lost her husband, having just sold her house of 30 years to move into a place by herself alone, in a new state separated from her support system, was devastated.

I was angry on the phone with customer service and I said "You should feel terrible for how this all went." He responded: "I don't feel bad at all."

To me, that sums it up.

They put the blame on us for not getting insurance; they blamed us for our boxes being too "flimsy" (we got standard moving boxes from Lowe's); they blamed us for not recognizing that furniture might get destroyed in transit. I was not offered any money back, or an apology, or recognition that they'd failed to live up to their responsibility to take care of our items.

So we're left to going on the internet and talking into the void, and hoping that someone reads this first before making the mistake of entrusting them with their prized possessions.

Move size: 2 Bedroom Home Service cost: $5725

Whatever money you think you're saving, or whatever customer service you think you're getting - turn away now because they're trash to work with. We've tried getting in touch with our rep on the day of the move (as she advised if we had concerns) and have tried since and she never responds. The people that do respond say they'll call back but never do. We got one guy on the phone who said the truck driver wouldn't be able to fit the truck in our driveway after he hit our fence, and then our neighbor had to park it for him. Safeway has been no help and absolute NIGHTMARE. TURN AWAY NOW.

Move size: 3 Bedroom Home Service cost: $9500

This company is an absolute scam. When I called to set up a date for my move, their salesperson sound super nice to me trying to sell me their moving service. He gave me a quote of 10,000 which is very high but I understand that these days, everything went up so I did set up the service with them. Remember, this company is not a carrier, they are only the people that hook you up with whatever carrier that they want. They will ask you to pay 33% of the deposit upfront, then 33% on the date of the pickup, and the remaining will be paid on the date of the delivery. Once you pay that very first 33%, your soul is sold to this horrible company. Their whole attitude changed, they will be super mean to you, not answering your calls, wouldn’t reply to your email when you have questions. Long story short, I was promised that the person will come on a Friday morning, but I waited all day, they never came, didn’t even answer my call. When someone finally answered the call, his reply was hey you are not our only customer ok. Then, the mover finally showed up on a Saturday morning, he quoted me 6,000 moves. So the new total is $16,000… This is ridiculous, he Threatens me by saying if you don’t agree to this then we will leave and you can’t get your 33% of deposit back. I was forced to sign that contract because I don’t have a choice. Then the big nightmare begins, once I arrived to my destination, I called them and told them to deliver my stuff, they promised that it will be 3 person unloading the stuff on the delivery and they will come on Thursday. LIE again, I waited all day, no one show up. So I called but no one answered. I have waited until Sunday, three days after what they have promised, the person that answered the phone never apologize and said you know that I can legally keep your stuff for 21 days right? This is crazy… Then finally, the truck came two days after, which is on a Tuesday. Guess what?? Only one mover was there, not three as they have promised. The only mover that showed up barely speak any English, have an attitude. He refused to move my massage chair to my room saying that it doesn’t fit and ALL of my computer desks were completely destroyed, 6 of my shelf were crashed, my expensive massage chair, bed frame, mirror, table were all damaged. (See photos) because of their careless, bad handling, and horrible packaging skill. Also, all their mover will ask you for tips at the end, so unprofessional!!! Even with their terrible service, they would even dare to ask you for tips!!! Unbelievable… When I called up their company, Safeway will tell you that they are not responsible to pay for the damages because they are just a company that sells your moving service. So I contacted the carrier and ask for only $1,000 for damaging my stuff, after 30days, they responded by saying I can only pay you $82, WTF… excuse my language but please DON’T use this company for your moving service, they are a scam!!! I am SURE all their 5 stars reviews are fake, no way it’s true… NO WAY!

Move size: 3 Bedroom Home Service cost: $16000

My experience with Safeway Moving Systems and specifically Scott Curtis there was shocking. When I realized how he'd scammed me and tried to discuss it on the phone, he hung up and never picked up again. No responses to texts. Nothing. The last two days of my cross country move from Dallas to Los Angeles were done completely in the dark without Safeway responding to calls. What was originally estimated to be a $9k job ballooned up to $24k in the last second. It was just a nightmare.

Speaking to the driver when he arrived, I discovered that Safeway Moving Systems isn't even a moving company. They're brokers, skimming 30% off the top and hiring other moving companies to do the job. So I essentially paid Safeway Moving Systems and Scott Curtis $7.5k to not return my calls. I'm scouring the internet to post this everywhere I can to warn people of these frauds.

Move size: 3 Bedroom Home Service cost: $24000

I researched for quite some time different moving companies and I know Safeway was rated high. Getting it organized and the contract initiated was a breeze - but once they have your money, your move goes to whoever they can get and this is where it went south.

Zero communication in terms of when I’d get my things. I would call, they would have the ‘dispatcher’ call me and they would tell me one day but then not confirm. When we finally got a date, they assured me they would let me know two days in advance and instead they contacted me the night before. Ok so that is minor compared to what comes now.

They had my address and items for several weeks and then come moving day they want to tell me that they have to get another smaller truck for an extra 750 dollars - I found out later that this is what these companies do.

Then, they bring the truck to offload for the smaller truck - with ONE GUY! So on a Friday evening I am going through the list of all my items - from California to NY State with one guy. He ended up not being able to take the truck that night to my new place and we had to do it the next morning. The following morning he had rounded up two other guys and they moved my stuff into my apartment.

Not only am I still missing boxes but legs on furniture was broken off, literally any piece of furniture that could have been scratched was scratched, dishes are smashed. There were bins from another customer mixed in with my bins.

I contact Safeway for putting in a claim and I talked to someone named Lauren, who tells me she will send me over the information the next day. Never got it.

I called today and spoke to ‘Taneesha’ who was very rude and dismissive of the fact that I just paid these crooks cash and I’m missing things and have lots of broken items, telling me that I wasn’t listening and that I had to reach out myself to the actual subcontractors to file a claim. I know this - and I told her this- but Lauren was to email me the information on who it was and how to file it. I asked this person to send it via email - again. I still don’t have it.

I don’t know how this is going to end up but I feel like I got scammed - between the lack of communication once they had my things, the extra charges the last-minute, the zero customer service now that they have my money- I would avoid these guys. I’m very disappointed with how it ended up. I consider myself pretty smart about not being taken advantage of but not this time - and their rude reps only exacerbates an already upsetting situation - which, if they had an ounce of empathy or care for the customer, they would try to be helpful instead of uncaring.

Move size: 3 Bedroom Home Service cost: $10000